Chapter 11: Chairman Lee, Cheongdam Town Building Owner (1)

The phone had rung for a while before someone answered the phone.

“Jong-Suk?”

“Oh, bro!”

“Why didn’t you pick up the phone quickly?”

“I was in the bathroom.”

“How did the interview go?”

“I didn’t go to the interview.”

“Why not?”

“My dad told me not to.”

“Why?”

“He said if I don’t think I have the aptitude for a government job, I should try the police exam.”

“Being a policeman is good. It will be highly competitive though; I am sure there are a lot of people who are preparing for the exam.”

“That’s why I want to first take a qualifying exam.”

“A qualifying exam?”

“Remember? I registered at the Career Center last time. You did it too.”

“Yes, I did.”

“I want to prepare for a qualification test for welders or electricians. Having a skill certificate will add extra points to the police exam score.”

“Hmmm. Do you think you have the aptitude for police work?”

“I can’t say that I don’t or I do, but since my parents want that much, I am willing to try it.”

“Then are you going back to Noryangjin?”

“I have another option, Ingang… but I think I should take the course from Kyungdangi in Noryangjin.”

“That’s a good idea. In fact, there is no hope for a factory worker. The work is hard, and the pay is low. If you know someone who wants to work at a factory, we should talk him out of starting it.”

“Bro, why don’t you study with me?”

“I gave up. I have to work. You have your parents who can financially support you.”

“It would have been really nice if you have some money saved up… I wish you hadn’t lost your money in the stock market…”

“Let’s not talk about that. It makes me sick every time I think about stocks.”

“Haha. Ok.”

“I will let you go. Good night.”

“Bye!”

After getting off the phone with Jong-Suk, Gun-Ho gave some thought to it.

“Should I get a skill certificate? If I learn forklift driving or welding skills, I can get extra pay at work.”

The company which Gun-Ho was working for paid more to workers who had certification for welders, electricians, or environmental technicians.

“I could get off at 6 PM. I will have to find a night class. I need this to survive even though I will be really exhausted.”

Gun-Ho searched the internet to find a useful certification for him.

“I can easily get a certification for forklift or excavator driving, but there are so many drivers out there already… Learning welding skills or getting environmental technician certification does seem to be a good choice for me. Nah, maybe I should learn injection molding skills or CAD.”

He searched the internet for an actual class only to find that there was no class provided at night for those skills.

“Since I registered at a Career Center, I can take free courses sponsored by the government… but they only provide computer web design course or CAD at night. Maybe I should try Seoul even though it is far; they probably have something for me.”

Gun-Ho diligently searched the internet while lying in bed.

“Damn, I can’t find the right course for me. I can make more if I have a skill certificate.”

Gun-Ho fell asleep. He didn’t wash his feet and didn’t turn off the lights.

Saturday came around. Gun-Ho went fishing with Jong-Suk to the reservoir in Pocheon. It was fall; Cosmos flowers were swaying in the breeze. It was a good season for fishing.

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“Bro, you look good today.”

“I didn’t before?”

“Uh? That Genesis limousine is here again today.”

Gun-Ho walked down to the reservoir. The same men, one in his 60s and the other in his 40s, were fishing while listening to the radio. Gun-Ho approached them and said,

“Hello? Did you catch any fish?”

“Oh, the young man with ShinWangJaeWang fate. Come closer. We caught two large fish.”

Jong-Suk nudged Gun-Ho and whispered,

“He is not mute.”

“Shhh, watch your language. He is a chairman.”

“A chairman?”

The man in his 60s gestured for Gun-Ho to come closer to where he was; he was smiling.

“Look. They are big, aren’t they?”

He lifted his fishing net; there were two carps that was bigger than the palm of an adult’s hand, flapping.

“They are indeed large. Congratulations.”

“We had met at the philosophy hall the other day, and we met again today. I guess we are truly meant to meet each other. Is he your friend?”

“Well, he is two years younger than me.”

“Is that right? He actually looks younger than you.”

Jong-Suk seemed surprised with his unexpected conversation with the man, and he looked at Gun-Ho. Jong-Suk had no clue what was going on when Gun-Ho and the man talked about the philosophy hall and etc.

“Jong-Suk, I met him by accident at the philosophy hall last week.”

“We must have known each other in our previous lives. That’s why we met again in this life. Come, please have a seat. We ran into each other a few times here; let’s get to know one another. I am Chairman Lee.”

As he introduced himself as Chairman Lee, he gave his business card to Gun-Ho and Jong-Suk. The other man who looked in his 40s smiled a little today; he had been unfriendly.

“What do you guys do for a living?”

“I work at a plastic factory in Yangju, and this guy is currently preparing for the police exam.”

“Oh, I see.”

Gun-Ho took a closer look at his business card. It said Chairman of Dongil Paper Corp.

“You are a chairman of a paper production company. I thought you owned several buildings in Cheongdam since that’s what Master Park said…”

“Haha. I am a chairman of a paper production company, and also the owner of a few buildings. Oh, let’s introduce ourselves to each other. This is Manager Gweon from Dongil Paper.”

Chairman Lee introduced the man in his 40s to Gun-Ho and Jong-Suk.

“Hi, I am Gun-Ho Goo.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Manager Gweon is a bit curt. He was recently discharged from the military; he was a major. He has a sixth-degree black belt in taekwondo, and he is a very earnest person.”

Manager Gweon laughed innocently; his tone of voice was no longer curt.

“My first son actually runs Dongil Paper, and I just go fishing like this. The company is in Ansan. My son is worried about me so he let Manager Gweon stay with me like a bodyguard. Haha.”

“And are you friends with the head of that philosophy hall?”

“Are you talking about Master Park? He is my childhood friend. We grew up together in the same town.”

“Oh, I see.”

“He is a funny man. He was fascinated with religion, and went to church enthusiastically for a while, then moved to a Buddhist temple to become a monk. He was once a bit into Mediumship as well; he used to practice with a medium. And now, he is a fortune teller.”

“I heard he is very good.”

“Well, he could be to some people, and he might not be to some other people.”

“Huh?”

“Well, since he has a lot of clients, he is probably good. Haha.”

Chairman Lee cast his fishing line towards the water vigorously after pulling it.